Fredericton Jewellery Business Supports At-Risk Venezuelan Families
FREDERICTON – Despite small jewellery business, Asteria, struggling with decreasing sales during Covid-19, they have created a collection that allows buyers to give back. For every $100 sold of the Cassiopeia Collection, Asteria will give $30 to Venezuela180 supporting at-risk Venezuelan families during Covid-19.
“We are a very, very, very small business. But, we decided that we wanted to help anyways,” said Sofia Paura, co-owner of Asteria.
Paura, along with Oriana Cordido and Isis Lucchesi, make up the Asteria team. Cordido is originally from Venezuela and Lucchesi and Paura are from Brazil. Cordido graduated from St. Thomas University in 2019 and Lucchesi and Paura are entering their fourth year of study at STU.
They began their business online in October 2019.
“We are a small business made by three internationals … we are three women and we are trying to give back to others as much as we can,” Paura said.
Cordido came up with the idea after having people ask about the jewelry she would often wear. In Venezuela, a lot of women sell their jewelry, so Cordido thought bringing jewelry from Latin America could help the sellers create a bigger market while also bringing Latin American culture to Canada through jewelry.
She approached Lucchesi and Paura with the idea after working with them through the organization she created at UNB, Enactus – a group of students using entrepreneurial skills to solve community issues.
Lucchesi wants to study fashion after her time at STU and Paura wants to go into marketing and communications, so Cordido figured they’d be perfect business partners.
The women think the most challenging aspect of being business owners is accountability and money management. But, starting their business online has helped them from slipping into debt.
“I don’t have to pay rent, I don’t have to pay electricity, I don’t have to pay staff,” Cordido said.
“Everything is online now. And that’s what farmer’s markets are for.”
The farmer’s market is where the Asteria girls market their product. Without that location during Covid-19, sales haven’t been where they used to be.
“Our biggest sales were in farmer’s markets,” Lucchesi said.
“That’s when people can talk to us, they can see us, learn from our stories. And they get excited when they see the jewelry.”
Lucchesi, Cordido, and Paura were also excited about the Garrison Night Market that they were supposed to be a part of this year.
When Covid-19 hit, Asteria changed up their marketing tactics to make up for the loss of the farmer’s market. They spread the word mouth-to-mouth, they used social media to pull in more sales, and they also implemented free shipping for all orders inside of Canada.
They also started a new blog. The first post helps jewelry-owners learn how to take care of their jewelry at home.
“Every month, I’m going to choose something that I see in the fashion industry that relates to Asteria and I’ll write about it,” Lucchesi said.
The Asteria motto is “for the Goddess in you.” The name Asteria comes from the Greek Titan Goddess of the night oracles and falling stars. Asteria promotes the idea that every woman should feel like a Goddess and shine like a star.
With their partnership with Venezuela180, the girls hope more people will be motivated to buy from their Cassiopeia Collection. Buyers can indulge in a piece of jewelry to make themselves feel better while also contributing to the Venezuela180 cause.
“I never want to be the person that only sells stuff,” Paura said.
“You want to sell stuff and make someone’s life better.”